A Sunny Day in Gravdal

   After all the doom and gloom of the captain's announcement yesterday we were able to anchor in Gravdal and the tenders were able to operate. In fact the day was partly sunny

Along The Trail

all day, on the cool side with a strong wind. It was a better day than yesterday. We had an afternoon tour meeting on the dock so we decided to go ashore early and just spend the entire day ashore. We caught the tender around 10 and walked into the town of Lofeten. It was about 4 kilometers each way. The Loften islands are a mix of high mountains and flat land. There is a lot of sheep grazing. The walk into town took about an hour along a relatively flat walking trail. The town itself had very little of interest. We did stop at a local pub for a drink. I ordered the locally

Ballstad

bottled beer but never did see the name as the bar keep poured it out for me. It was a nice way to spend a few minutes. Norway is a very expensive place to live. The bottle of beer was about $16 Canadian and that was the going rate the last time we stopped for a drink a few days ago. We were back on the dock for our tour in plenty of time. It was very disorganized. On the ship, tour prep is very precise. Here you had to find the person assigning which buses to take. No central desk, sign, location. Just someone with a clip board. We were off to Ballstad with a guide who was quickly recruited. The town is a fishing village. We got out of the bus and looked at the vessels.

The Beach

Nothing was planned. A bit of a rip off! We then headed north to a large sandy beach surrounded by mountains. Apparently it is the largest one in Norway. The day was partly sunny but the clouds hung on the mountain tops. There was a strong wind In this area many days are foggy and wet. The tour was rated easy and it was that. We took the tour for the photo opportunities and it was semi successful. We caught the last tender back, quickly showered and change and we were off for something to eat. The was a line dance review and I can't believe we did some of the dances. At least we could move around a bit. After dinner we saw the show by Leanne Mitchell, the 1^st winner of the Voice U.K. It was very good with many different

Fun In The Loften Islands

types of music although we thought her “classical” style was the best. We cross the Arctic Circle heading south sometime tonight and I want to get up and take a picture. I missed it the first time. As far as the midnight sun, it is still light out but very overcast – no sun here. We are rocking a bit and the captain gave another warning about the sea conditions. We are at sea tomorrow as the cruise days are slipping away.